U.S. Senate may vote on Ukraine aid package Feb 7 - Ambassador Markarova
That’s according to Ukraine’s Ambassador to the USA, Oksana Markarova, who delivered the news via Facebook, reports Ukrinform.
"As expected, on February 4, the Senate Appropriations Committee published the text of the bill on the US international aid package, including for Ukraine, and migration reform, which is a precondition for the Republicans' support of U.S. international aid, including for Ukraine... The publication of the bill allows for holding on February 5 a vote, earlier announced by Democrats’ leader in Senate Chuck Schumer, on completing the debate of the legislative vehicle for the package of international aid and migration reform, and on February 7 – the vote for the package itself," Markarova said.
The Ambassador recalled that the bill lays down $60 billion in aid to Ukraine, of which defense expenditures amount to $50.43 billion. Of this amount, $48.4 billion is assigned to the U.S. Department of Defense for further support to Ukraine in its fight against Russia until December 31, 2024 inclusive.
The bill also provides $9.654 billion for economic/financial/civil and nuclear security, including $7.85 billion in direct budget support to Ukraine. Markarova noted that the bill prohibits reimbursement of pensions at the expense of direct budget support from the USA. Another $1.58 billion is earmarked for building a self-sufficient Ukrainian economy in priority sectors such as transport and energy, as well as private sector development.
Markarova thanked Joe Biden’s administration and everyone in Congress in both parties who support Ukraine and understand that passing a decision as soon as possible is critical for both Ukraine and U.S. national security.
"Ahead of us are days of really difficult and really public debates – not on Ukraine, but on part of the package that concerns the U.S. migration policy... We at the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States are actively working to promote aid," she assured.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, U.S. senators on Sunday released details of a bipartisan bill based on the president's supplemental national security funding request, including for Ukraine, Israel, and the US southern border.
In October 2023, Joe Biden submitted to Congress the supplemental request for over $105 billion. Since then, negotiations have been dragging in Congress, in particular, regarding the implementation of migration reform and strengthening of the U.S. border, which was supposed to unlock the package of aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The new agreement roughly corresponds to the proportions defined in the request filed by the U.S. president.
